Snapshot #3 Sailing

The wind is blowing strong and consistent from the SE corner of the lake. My dad and I can't possibly pass up these conditions. We rig up the Hobie and leave the lift; the anticipation is killing me! Immediately we are leaned out over the edge trying to keep the windward hull in the water. This isn't quite enough weight over the edge (this is where I come in handy); I get out on the trapeze and prop myself on the side of the hull (with my balance depending on a rope), when the boat is at a 45+ degree angle. Usually it only lasts for about 15-30 seconds, but on this day we made it across the entire lake without having that hull touch water or flip over!

Snapshot #2 Winter Park

I suffer through the bitter cold and wind of the Timberline lift to reach the summit in order to reach pristine powder and deep woods skiing. On this particular day we had 13 inches dumped overnight, and we caught the first lift up in the morning. I was running a line down the mountain, and decided to stop in a clearing to catch my breath. The area was about 10' in diameter and I was perched on top of a large boulder. A gust of wind comes through the trees and snow starts falling gracefully all around me. Once it stopped, I smiled, said a silent thank you, and continued on my way.

Snapshot #1 St. Croix

On a beach in St. Croix, the sand is glistening from the rays of the sun as it sets. The only other girl my age at our resort happens to be stunningly beautiful and we have been chatting at the bar all afternoon sipping on refreshing tropical drinks. The waves lapping on the shore, combined with a crisp breeze off the ocean makes for a scene worthy of a postcard. It has been a spectacular day, and the night has yet to begin.

Author Questions

1. What influences did you have in your younger years that has influenced your writing greatly?

2. When writing about the environment, are you actively trying to influence the readers opinion on the issue or is the intent more just to raise awareness? What different techniques do you use to accomplish that goal?

Clarion

This is the town square in Clarion, IA where live and work during the summer, this picture gives off the quintessential small town feel for me. In the background there is the one screen movie theater, and there is a sign advertising the Farmers Market which plays a huge part in farming communities. The flag is also iconic because of the patriotism that abounds in rural America. I would have left out the street light that is awkwardly in the top portion of the picture and maybe had a group of people on the lawn to symbolize the tight community bonds.

The major theme of this piece would be that we must take care of the nature not only to preserve it for future generations, but to pay it back for all it has done for us as well. I think that the underlying tone of this piece was very angry or frustrated at the general population for completely taking the environment for granted. She sounded like she was scolding the people for allowing this to happen. It took the "we need to maintain our environment for future generations" political position, and made it more of a "we need to respect the environment for what it has given us".

My map is a road map of driving between both of my houses. The reason I chose to use this is because it is where I spend a large chunk of my time. I have spent many hundreds of hours going back and forth between them, and most of them I am alone. I use this time to think about what is going on in my life and my choice of music usually usually reflects/reinforces my thoughts. It may seem plain and unoriginal, but I see this road map as illustrating the time that I spend doing what is normally just getting from point A to point B. To me it represents the thoughts that came up during that time. Nothing inspires random thoughts about my life like an hour and a half of corn fields.